Turkiye and Africa to Deepen Partnership in Finance
During the 4th Turkiye – Africa Business and Economic Forum (#TABEF2023) held in Istanbul from 13 to 14 October 2023, the Export Credit Bank of Turkiye (also known as the Turk Eximbank) and the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) signed an agreement to boost trade and investment between Turkey and Africa.
In 2022, the trade volume between Turkiye and Africa exceeded USD 40 billion. To date, the value of projects executed by Turkish companies in Africa reached USD 85 billion at the end of 2022.
“As Türk Eximbank gives utmost importance to its operations on the African Continent, we are more than happy to sign this MoU with AFC, one of the most distinguished institutions regarding Africa’s sustainable development. I am confident that this MoU will be another step to strengthen our relationship with AFC based on a win-win partnership. Our collaboration on concrete projects will be mutually beneficial in terms of increasing trade volumes and contribution to the continent’s development.”
Turk Eximbank CEO Ali Guney
Needless to say, the Turk Eximbank played a leading role in financing key projects in Africa. Some of the flagship projects made possible by Turk Eximbank include the 300 MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) Plant in Senegal, the 80 MW Peat Power Plant in Rwanda.
It is worth noting that Turkiye and Ethiopia inked Military Agreements in 2021 which was ratified by the Turkish parliament in April 2023 while the Ethiopian Parliament approved the Agreements earlier. The Agreements calls for joint military exercises as well as non-combat operations such as counter-piracy, peacekeeping and humanitarian aid. The Agreements also pave the way for cooperation in the defense industry. On that note, it is worth noting that Turkiye has military training bases in Libya and Somalia.
Turkiye has established embassies in almost every capital in Africa. Turkish Airlines flies to more than 50 African airports spread across 33 countries in Africa. As a matter of fact, President Erdogan is the foreign leader who counts the most visits to Africa. Therefore, it is quite clear that Africa holds a prominent place within the foreign policy and economic diplomacy of Turkiye.
“We are pleased to deepen our already strong relationship with Türk Eximbank, an institution that shares a similar vision to accelerate Africa’s path to a prosperous future. Our partnership framework will pave the way for increased bilateral trade and infrastructure investment between Türkiye and Africa with a focus on beneficiating Africa’s abundant natural resources to increase value capture, create local jobs and drive rapid #industrialization on the continent”.
AFC Chair & CEO Samaila Zubairu